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Well after the night I've had, I'm not sure if I want to see what the repair bill is going to be!

I have a 2007 X3 Sport. It currently has 111,200 miles. I purchased it in 2008 as a CPO with 23,000 miles on it.

It has been a great vehicle. I've had a couple of minor issues while it was under warranty with the transfer case leaking and the brakes whining. These were both around 40,000 miles. However, around 90,000 miles I started noticing oil loss according to the onboard oil gauge. I added a quart. Around 95,000 miles the same thing happened so I took it in under CPO warranty. The dealership replaced the exhaust cam shaft and valve cover gasket.

I've always done all maintenance myself. I replaced the spark plugs in March 2012 right at 95,000 miles before I took it in above. I replaced the differential fluid and transfer case fluid at 95,000 miles too. The engine oil was last replaced at 97,000.

About two months ago I started the X3 and put it in reverse. It died. I restarted it and it was fine. It has been fine ever since.

I drove it about 50 miles to work this morning with no issues. This afternoon after getting off work I tried to start it. It cranks, but will not start. I quickly read online that some people have said this is a sign the battery is about to die. I tried to jump it from another vehicle, but got the same results. I then had my friend take me to Advance Auto to get a Group 48 battery. I installed it, but also got the same results.

I called my dealer, but they said it could be anything from a bad fuel pump, to a random sensor, to a bad fuse. They suggested that I tow it in.

At this point, being 50 miles away from home and 90 miles in the opposite direction away from the nearest BMW dealer, I felt that getting it towed was probably the best option. There are no well known indy's in my area.

Luckily, I remembered that I had emergency roadside assistance with my insurance company. So I called in for a tow. The insurance company covered up to $75.00 of the tow. But since it had to be towed 90 miles, I still had to pay $268.00 in towing fees!

Finally, to top it off, on the way back home with my wife in her three month old GMC Terrain, we hit two raccoons. One knocked the bumper cover loose!

I'm scared to think about what it could be causing the problem with not starting. I tried my wife's key when she got there to pick me up, but it was the same results.

Does anyone have any idea what else it could be and how much I might be looking at paying through the dealership?

It looks like it will be Monday before it gets processed into the service department and looked at.

If you had a model with an m54 motor I would be inclined to say it could be disa/ccv/4 hoses of the apocalypse related...but you don't....and if you did usually a MIL happens. You have an n52 like me...not the same problems.

Battery would have been my first thought too...the only thing that comes to mind is 1 question:

1) your wife's terrain issues (that is a bummer) leads me to think you might live in a wildlife area with rodents that might chew wires. Have you checked your main power line to battery from the starter/alternator to make sure nothing has chewed into it?

Outside of that I don't have a thought. You have new plugs... Ignition coils should be fine...hmmmm

The dealer service department was able to get the X3 in today to diagnose the problem. The dealer called and said they had figured out the problem and offered me a list of other potential things that needed fixing!

The problem is a bad fuel pump. It appears it will be in the shop until the middle of next week since they did not have one in stock. The replacement cost is roughly $900.00. I'm still pretty shocked that it is this high, but I have to get it in running condition.

The service advisor also said that my thrust rod bushings were bad and needed replacing, and the thermostat was causing a fault. The SA said that if I chose to replace the thermostat that the water pump also needed to be replaced at the same time. The total cost to replace the thermostat and water pump was $1,300.00.

I told the SA to only replace the fuel pump to get me running. Hopefully, the thermostat fault is just a one time deal. It bothers me though. I hope that the SA was just trying to make a few bucks.

There is never a good time for car repairs, but dang it, I only have eight payments left on the X3!!

What should I do about the thermostat and water pump? Do you think it is something I can DIY? I'm fairly mechanically able. I've always changed the oil, diff fluids, transfer fluids, and spark plugs myself on the X3.

Also, do most dealerships offer a discount if the customer is a member of BMWCCA?